Markus Rosenberg: Currently, Shakhtar resemble their old selves back in 2009

Captain of Malmo took part in the press conference before the game against the Pitmen.

- Markus, how do you imagine the future game picture? - Hard to say. We know that the opponents will attack. This team resemble Shakhtar back in 2009. They also have many Brazilians in the squad, they wingers attack well and, above all, the defenders on the flanks. Therefore, we are tuned to attacking football. We hope that we will not lose the energy that we had in our previous meetings against Real Madrid, Celtic and Salzburg.

- As the captain, how are going to influence the young players? - Of course, psychological preparation is important. For example, it’s difficult to play the first leg against Juventus at their ground. But we act as we can. We say to our young players: “Try hard, guys, fight and always try to make progress.” Last year, we played Olympiacos and Atletico, and noticed how the guys were growing from match to match.

- Have Shakhtar become stronger or weaker since the day when you played for Werder against them in the UEFA Cup final? - It is always difficult to compare who is better and who is worse. I know that Shakhtar have a very high defensive line, the incredible pace of the game. But again, making an analysis on the basis of what we see on television is a thankless job.

- Markus, what will make this clash different from the previous two? - We will put the opponents under pressure again, we will not just sit and wait in defence. Of course, playing against Real Madrid or PSG, the players certainly take unnecessary precaution, though they are never unnecessary. Nevertheless, we are ready to move upfield, to operate compactly. Just as compactly we acted against Real Madrid on our half of the pitch. If we put number 10 a bit up and pass it more accurately, I think it will bring us success in the Champions League. Such tactics are the most appropriate for us - to show more aggressiveness.

- What can you say about Alex Teixeira? - Frankly, I do not really watch the Ukrainian league. I know in general that Shakhtar have good strikers. Plus, the team have many Brazilians – and they are very fast players. This is the least that I have noticed. But I do not waste my energy on this, I prefer to focus on other things. Talking about the same Real Madrid or PSG is much easier, because we often see the performance of those teams and their players. That is, we had a better idea about the previous opponents than about Shakhtar. As for the attacking players of the Donetsk team - yes, they are strong.

- You do not follow the strikers of Shakhtar. Then, maybe, you would say anything about their defence? - In the match against Dynamo Kyiv I paid attention only to the attacking third. They fullbacks play high.

- Zlatan Ibrahimovic decided to put in the city’s central square two screens to feature the Champions League broadcasts. How do you like that move? - Malmo is Zlatan’s home city. That’s a positive and interesting initiative. There are many people who want to see our game, but we cannot accommodate everyone in the stadium bowl. And Ibrahimovic helped to resolve this issue. When we received Real Madrid, we also had many people who wanted to see that encounter. Our club and the city are particularly associated with Zlatan, so everyone welcomes his decision.

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